Andrew ‘AJ’ Freund hinted at parental abuse to Illinois doctor just months before he was found murdered

JoAnn Cunningham, left, and Andrew Freund Sr., have been charged in the murder of their five year-old son, Andrew "AJ" Freund. A criminal complaint filed Thursday, April 25, 2019, outlines first-degree murder, aggravated battery and several other charges against the couple. (McHenry County Sheriff's Department via AP)

The adorable 5-year-old allegedly beaten to death by his parents had suggested he was abused, but child welfare officials left him in the home they had visited repeatedly.

Just months before Andrew Freund’s parents were charged with his murder, the Illinois boy suggested to an emergency room doctor he might have been hit by his mother, according to a summary of Department of Children and Family Service records released Friday.

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In December 2018, Andrew, who was also called AJ, told investigators a bruise on his hip came from the family dog — but he offered a different explanation when he sat down with an emergency room physician later the same day.

The doctor was unable to determine the cause of the 5-year-old’s injury, but said it could have resulted from several things including a “dog, belt or football,” according to a summary of the children’s service records.

More than four months later, AJ’s body was found wrapped in plastic in a shallow grave. On Wednesday, AJ’s parents, Joann Cunningham, 36, and Andrew Freund Sr., 60, were arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

The couple first reported AJ missing April 18. In a 911 call, Freund told the dispatcher he put AJ to bed the night before and woke up to find he was gone. “I got back from the doctor’s appointment and I checked in on him to say good morning but he wasn’t there,” he said during the phone call.

But police alleged Cunningham and Freund forced their son “to remain in a cold shower for an extended period of time and/or struck” AJ, according to a criminal complaint obtained by CNN. A pathologist has ruled the boy died from head trauma due to blunt force injuries.

The DCSF in a summary of its reports and records accounted for several encounters it had with the family, including a history of child welfare hotline calls.

The agency was twice called on Cunningham in 2012 — once on allegations of abusing prescription drugs and neglecting a foster child and another for “environmental neglect and injurious environment” for her eldest son.

Investigators ruled there was no evidence to support either claim and both cases were expunged.

The following year, DCSF was granted protective custody of AJ after he was born with opiates in his system. He was returned to his family in 2015 after his mother and father completed a drug treatment program and parenting courses.

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Investigators closed AJ’s case in 2016 and the agency did not have contact with the family again until March 2018, when someone reported that Cunningham was found unresponsive in her car and rushed to the emergency room. The witness added that the child was seen at the hospital with “odd bruising on his face.”

A welfare worker met with the family a month after the visit and determined that AJ and his 4-year-old brother, Parker, seemed “clean” and did not show “signs of maltreatment.”

Both boys were taken into DCFS custody on Dec. 18, 2018, when Cunningham was arrested for driving on a suspended license. The Crystal Lake Police Department expressed concern after they discovered a “large bruise on AJ’s hip … the ceiling falling, the floor torn and the children’s bedroom’s smelling of dog urine.”

The next call the agency received regarding the family was on April 18 — the same day Freund reported his son missing. A tipster reported possible neglect and inadequate parental supervision, prompting a police response.

When they arrived, they found a “ripped up floor, food lying around and clothes and garbage every,” according to the summary.

DCSF said that is was reviewing the handling of cases involving AJ and his family — both a caseworker and supervisor have been placed on administrative duty amid the probe.

“As we move forward we will be fully transparent with the public as we seek to address any possible shortcomings in the incident and understand how we can better serve the state’s vulnerable children and families,” DCSF said in the summary.

Acting director of DCSF Marc Smith in A statement to CNN added: “Protecting vulnerable children who come to our attention is at the core of our mission at DCSF. All of us feel this loss. Our priority is the care and safety of Andrew’s younger sibling.”